JMalcolm Lee tried to find a specific text message from his older sister, but there were so many.

He scrolled and scrolled through positive messages and Bible verses until he found just the right one that resonated on Saturday.

Shandrika Lee-Gerch passed along this from Joshua 1:9: “Be strong and courageous, for the Lord will be with you wherever you go.”

Lee had just wrapped up another stellar performance in which he scored 23 points, including 9of 10 free throws, to lead UCLA to a 68-57 victory over Stanford on Saturday at Pauley Pavilion.

His defensive gems really have put the Bruins (13-6, 5-2 Pacific-10 Conference) back on track.

Anyone can score, and Lee is doing that, too. He’s doing everything.

Scoring, defending and leading. UCLA has 10 wins in its past 12 games and four in a row in the Pac-10.

Even with freshman center Josh Smith out Saturday and playing only six minutes against Cal two days earlier, the Bruins recorded a last-second win over Cal and rallied from an early 14-point deficit to beat Stanford.

So many players are responsible for the turnaround from UCLA’s dismal 14-18 season of a year ago, but the most impactful has been Lee. The backcourt of Lee and Jerime Anderson seemingly took more heat than coach Ben Howland.

Lee’s shot was the object of fans’ anger, so much it’s surprising Jay Leno didn’t take a shot in his monologue.

“I tried not to pay attention to that,” Lee said of the criticism. “I know what I’m capable of. I definitely know I could’ve been better.

“I didn’t need to listen to the outside to know that. I’m my own worst critic.”

Message boards ignited fury over Lee’s subpar season, in which he averaged 12.1 points and started all 32 games but had the most turnovers (83) on the team. He turned to his 28-year-old sister, an assistant coach for the West Point women’s basketball team and former Pepperdine player, for guidance.

Even though they’re eight years apart, they share a special bond over basketball.

“We’d be in the gym on Saturday nights until 11 p.m., but those things people don’t understand,” Lee-Gerch said. “He gets a lot of rap on his shot from the fans, but I’ve seen that kid shoot. He can shoot. He does work on it. I’ll be the first to attest to that. I remind him of that.

“I tell him to look where he’s come from and remember all the shots he’s gotten up, just to gain that confidence.”

She stays up until 1:30 a.m. watching Lee’s games with the college basketball package she purchased, then texts him or talks to him through Skype.

“She tells me to keep reading the Bible and that everything happens for a reason,” Lee said. “God works in mysterious ways. She’s keeping me humble.”

Lee changed his shot under Howland’s tutelage this offseason and things have progressed. He made 43 percent of his field goals last season but just 25 percent from 3-point range. This year, he’s averaging 12.8 points on 43 percent shooting and 32 percent from 3-point range.

Howland is a defensive-minded coach, and he loved Lee held Cal’s Allen Crabbe to four points until Lee fouled out. Crabbe then scored 13 of his 17 points the last few minutes.

“There’s not a better defender in the country on the wing as Malcolm Lee,” Howland said. “He proves it time and again.”

He’s also proving it every time he steps on the court he’s not the same player he was last year. Lee said is the difference this year.

“It’s more mental,” Lee said. “If you go out there with less than the mindset you should, you’ll be more timid.”

Perhaps most impressive is the quiet junior has taken a leadership role. Howland said he didn’t have anyone fit that leadership capacity.

It was last year’s 68-64 loss to USC that really stuck with Lee, a game in which he had six turnovers. UCLA didn’t win the rivalry game at the Galen Center this year either, but the Bruins are second in the Pac-10.

Lee has won over his critics.

“Being his sister, it’s natural for it to bother me,” Lee-Gerch said. “It takes a mature person not to let it bother you. It’s tough to look in the mirror when you’re not playing well. He’s mature enough to see he wasn’t doing well and what he’s capable of doing.